Water Ink Panel: Starting with Bow Technique to Hunt the Sun and Patrol the Skies
Chapter 34 - 33 Picked Up a Treasure

Linfeng Hall, front courtyard.

Li Linfeng stopped Shen Qing before he could leave.

Shen Qing didn't know why Li Linfeng was looking for him, so he turned back and respectfully said, "Uncle."

Li Linfeng calmly asked, "I forgot to ask you earlier, where did you learn the Nine Skills?"

Shen Qing thought Li Linfeng was concerned about the difference in schools, and his heart skipped a beat.

After much deliberation, Shen Qing still decided to tell the truth: "Uncle, no one taught me. I just practiced by studying the illustrations in the manual, and unexpectedly, I managed to train my Qi-Blood."

Li Linfeng, who was always calm and composed, showed a hint of surprise and slight suspicion.

The Great Zhou Court collected martial mechanisms, and the true path of martial arts lay with the court.

Their cultivation methods were closely guarded and not easily shown to others.

As a result, apart from the government and those martial arts halls under its control, there was not much martial arts content available in the market.

Even if occasional martial arts content was circulated, there would often be many cryptic phrases or key points known only to martial masters.

The Nine Skills was such an entry-level martial art: neither too difficult nor too easy.

But without guidance, practicing it well wasn't an easy task.

Li Linfeng glanced up and down at Shen Qing and continued, "So, you bought the Nine Skills manual outside? When you bought this cultivation technique, didn't the seller teach you any secrets?"

"This Nine Skills wasn't something I bought. I took it from someone else." Shen Qing explained.

Li Linfeng's fleshy face showed a slight astonishment.

To train Qi-Blood to this level just by practicing with the book's illustrations; he was truly at a loss for words.

This young man's understanding might be much higher than he had anticipated.

Seeing Li Linfeng not speak, Shen Qing feared he wouldn't believe him and that the decision on training martial arts would be ruined. He quickly pointed to Shen Xiaohu next to him and said, "I took the Nine Skills from the Chen Family Brothers, and my cousin can testify for me. I definitely didn't consult with other martial arts halls or have anyone teach me."

Shen Xiaohu hurriedly assured, "Yes, yes, that happened eight days ago. The whole village knows and can testify."

"Eight days! Self-taught?!!"

Even someone as composed as Li Linfeng couldn't help but have some emotional fluctuations at this moment.

He tightly clenched the hand hidden in his sleeve.

He knew all too well how rough the Nine Skills was.

Some key points in it were a fraction off, leading to a thousand-mile deviation.

Without guidance, just any crucial point could get one stuck for three to five months, and they wouldn't realize it without shedding blood.

Such an understanding, it could be called extraordinary.

He felt like he had struck gold!

"That's good." Li Linfeng glanced at Shen Qing, deliberated for a moment, then said, "Since you're already refining Qi-Blood, you should take some medicine to stabilize it. A Fu!"

"Master!"

In the front yard, the man with the prominent brow bone, who initially opened the door for them, hurriedly ran over when summoned, bowing respectfully in front of Li Linfeng.

"He has already joined the inner courtyard. Go fetch some good medicine for supplementing Qi-Blood for him."

A Fu nodded repeatedly in agreement, "Yes, Master."

After giving these instructions, Li Linfeng didn't say much more and left with large strides.

A Fu turned around and said to Shen Qing, "Young Master, please wait here a moment while I go get the medicine for you."

Being called "Young Master" for the first time, Shen Qing suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable.

He didn't know the specific rules here, so he modestly said, "I'm not a Young Master. My name is Shen Qing; you can just call me Qingzi."

"Except for direct disciples, our Master has never treated anyone else like this. Those medicines are very precious. Even if not now, you will certainly be a Young Master in the future."

A Fu smiled and didn't explain further to Shen Qing, putting his hands in his sleeves and quickly running to a small room in the front yard.

Direct disciple?

Shen Qing was stunned for a moment.

Seeing this, Shen Xiaohu whispered, "I didn't expect our Uncle to look so fierce. He's actually quite kind!"

...

When Shen Qing left Linfeng Hall, his head was full of thoughts about being a direct disciple.

He hadn't expected that he could have such an encounter.

When he returned to the street, he no longer felt envious of those young gentlemen and ladies dressed in silk.

Seeing it was already noon, Shen Qing went to a shop and bought some buns, and the three of them made do with that for lunch.

Then he went straight to the market selling miscellaneous goods and sold the two animal skin coats he got from the Chen Family, receiving one and a half silver taels.

After doing all that, Shen Qing didn't linger.

He used the money to buy some rice, flour, grains, oils, and a new cotton coat for his elder sister to improve their lives a bit.

By this point, all the money was nearly spent, and even the money initially sold in the village was given out.

But relatively speaking,

Today's trip to the county was rewarding, securing his future in martial arts.

Just for this matter alone, it was worth spending any amount.

As for the price each family in the village offered for the hunter's goods, he thanked the Chen Family's generosity, as he still had six or seven silver taels to fill that gap.

With all this trouble, Shen Qing once again became "utterly penniless," falling into a money shortage.

After returning to the village, he needed to think of ways to hunt more in the mountains to increase his income.

With a thought, the ink wash characters in Shen Qing's mind slowly emerged and expanded.

[Skill: Hunting (Small Success)]

[Progress: 89/200 points]

[Status: Cannot be Improved]

[Note: Continue practicing to achieve a comprehensive breakthrough. There is a certain probability that some hunting skills will evolve.]

There was still some progress to be made.

He had to hustle up for the eating skill, grabbing any chance he could.

With the collision of the wheels on the rough cobblestone road, Shen Qing swayed as he sat in the bumpy cart, collecting his thoughts.

In just a pot of tea's time, Shen Qing had already leisurely passed through the bustling streets and reached the city gate.

Taiping County's city gates closed five quarters before sundown, around a third quarter of shen Hour, which was about five to six in the afternoon.

At this time, the sky was still brightly lit, clearly much earlier than closing time.

But Shen Qing didn't dare delay leaving the city too late.

It still took some time to return to Hongshan Village from Taiping County.

Upon reaching the city gate, Shen Qing stopped, looking seriously at the shabby shantytown outside, his expression gradually turning solemn and furrowed.

He thought for a moment, then asked Zhang Shuyuan, "Can you drive the cart for me?"

Zhang Shuyuan, already knowing that the two brothers had entered Linfeng Hall, was much more restrained than before, not so lazy: "What do you want to do?"

"After leaving the city, you drive." Shen Qing tossed the reins to Zhang Shuyuan.

"And what about you?"

Shen Qing took out the bow and arrows he obtained from the Chen Family Brothers, tested them, and said, "Xiao Hu and I will each hold a bow to guard. The outer city is chaotic, so I'm not at ease."

Recalling the crowd of ragged people who surrounded them when they first arrived, daring enough to touch and grab, if any had ill intent, facing a crowd, they could easily suffer losses.

So, being prepared in advance would settle his mind.

Shen Qing tested the elm wood bow and arrows in his hand; they were about as well-made as the one at his home, better than the one Xiao Hu had.

He didn't hesitate or feel any reluctance and handed the other bow to Shen Xiaohu, instructing, "When we leave the city later, if anyone approaches with bad intentions, shoot immediately without hesitation.

"Make sure to show some toughness."

Having witnessed his cousin's skills, Shen Xiaohu now held Shen Qing in particular esteem, nodding emphatically, "I understand."

Shen Qing patted Zhang Shuyuan on the shoulder and said, "Sir, please do a good job driving the cart. Later on, I'll go hunting in the mountains to reward you."

After reassuring them, Shen Qing drew an arrow and nocked it on the string, thus feeling more secure.

"Alright, let's leave the city now."

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